Questions surround McLemore entering NBA Draft

Where former Kansas guard Ben McLemore goes in Thursday's NBA draft may be affected by a series of pre-draft workouts described in some media reports as disappointing.

If Ben McLemore is an NBA all-star five years from now, no one will remember a few chaotic weeks leading up to draft night.

And if he’s not? Maybe some will point to the pre-draft process as a warning signal for anyone who would listen.

No one knows what the future holds for McLemore, the Kansas guard who will be positioned in the green room for Thursday’s NBA draft. He could be the No. 1 pick. He could be the guy stuck fidgeting on ESPN as his draft stock tumbles. He could be a star. He could be a bust.

Whatever McLemore becomes in the NBA, the pre-draft reviews have been muddled at best. Tuesday, reports surfaced that Rodney Blackstock, the man who allegedly tried to buy influence with McLemore through payments to his AAU coach, was now officially serving as McLemore’s agent.

“Rodney Blackstock has been great,” McLemore told USA Today at the pre-draft combine in May. “Since Day One, since I met him, we have got that bond and communicating very well. And that's why I chose him to help me with this process.”

According to ESPN’s Chad Ford, Blackstock’s influence had created friction with the Rival Sports Group, the L.A.-based agency McLemore chose for representation. The relationship between Blackstock and Rivals is murky; according to an NBA source, Blackstock may have been working for Rivals in some capacity before breaking away to represent McLemore on his own. In the resulting confusion, general managers found themselves calling the wrong agents, unable to reach McLemore’s representatives to schedule workouts.

When McLemore did participate in workouts — with the Cavaliers at No. 1, the Magic at No. 2 and the Suns at No. 5 — the results were reportedly underwhelming.

“McLemore remains in the top five, but I'm starting to have my doubts,” Ford wrote after McLemore’s workout with the Suns. “I love the talent. But his lack of preparation for the draft is hurting him. Multiple sources told me that his workout in Phoenix was not impressive; he wasn't in shape, and he struggled to keep up in the workout. I heard similar things in Orlando.”

All of this will become a footnote, of course, if McLemore goes on to stardom in the NBA. One source connected to the league said questions about how McLemore handled the draft process shouldn’t be much of a deterrent for a team smitten by his talent.

“If I’m a GM, I’m looking at it from the perspective of, ‘Hey, he’s young. We’re going to let him mature, and if he’s made bad decisions, hopefully he’ll make better ones,’” the source said. “Everything I hear about him is he’s a good kid, so I don’t think it will effect him at all in the draft. There might be some question marks, but at the end of the day, his talent speaks for itself.”

That talent made McLemore a star at KU, where he averaged 15.9 points and shot 42 percent from 3-point range as a freshman. If a team is willing to exercise some patience, KU coach Bill Self said, McLemore is capable of production that will erase any pre-draft uncertainty.

“Early in his career, like a lot of guys, he may not be a guy that is not producing to the point where his draft status said he (would),” Self said. “I do think that could be the case, but I tell everybody I’ve talked to, I think by January to February he could be a guy that’s averaging 13 points a game for anybody that picks him.

“I do think he has that type of ability, and I do think he could be a potential all-star.”